Lipotec Opens US Subsidiary

Lipotec Opens US Subsidiary

• Lipotec has increased its presence in the US through the establishment of Lipotec LLC, a move that’s in tune with the company’s strategy of expansion and commitment to the marketplace.

Lipotec LLC, based in Jersey City, NJ, will manage full-scale operations for the US market, enabling Lipotec to deal with regional partners and clients locally.

Lipotec has been active in the US cosmetic market for more than 20 years through its exclusive distributor Centerchem, Inc., with whom it will continue to work closely.

Full operations management of Lipotec LLC will be the responsibility of Domenico Palella, who has been internally promoted to general manager. Palella joined Lipotec in 2008 and early in 2009 was appointed to managing director of Lipotec Srl, the firm’s subsidiary in Italy. His extensive knowledge of the industry and his business expertise make him an outstanding choice to head the new office team, according to the firm.

“We are confident and excited about the possibilities of collaborating on a day-to-day basis with our US customers,” said Dr. Juan Carlos Escudero, CEO of Lipotec. “We look forward to developing with them specific and exclusive projects.”

Contact details for Lipotec LLC are: 2500 Plaza 5 Harborside Financial Center, Jersey City, NJ 07311; Tel: (201) 633-4662; Fax: (201) 484-7201; Email: [email protected].

In addition, Lipotec has made other moves at its operations in France and Germany, including office relocation and key leadership appointments.

Lipotec has appointed J.M. Cabello as the new CEO for Lipotec GmbH, the company’s subsidiary for the German, Austrian and Dutch markets. Cabello joined Lipotec GmbH in 2010 as sales manager.
Wolfgang Schueller, former CEO of Lipotec GmbH, has been appointed key account coordinator for Lipotec.

Due to the rapid growth of business and operations during the past two years, Lipotec GmbH has moved from Düsseldorf to a new corporate office in Frankfurt. The new facilities will enhance operational efficiency and will help to support the partners’ needs while reinforcing the company’s commitment to Central Europe. The new address of Lipotec GmbH is: Nassaustrasse 3; 65719 Hofheim-Wallau; Tel: +(49) 612.253.89.90; Fax: +(49) 612.25.38.99.10; E-mail: [email protected].

Lipotec has also promoted Elena Cañadas to managing director of Lipotec SAS, the company’s subsidiary in France. Cañadas joined Lipotec in 2006 and has been marketing director since 2008.

In announcing the new appointment Dr. Escudero added “The new structure will provide our office in France with the organizational effectiveness necessary to continuously improve services. The new team’s experience will be highly valuable to Lipotec SAS as we move forward into 2012.”

More info: www.lipotec.com

New Address for Vigon

• Vigon International, Inc. has a new address: 127 Airport Rd., East Stroudsburg, PA 18301, for mail, UPS and FedEx. Customers should continue to send invoice payments to its existing remittance address (PO Box 824166, Philadelphia, PA 19182-4166).

More info: Kathy Pelaez, 570-476-6193

Nu Skin Named a Fastest-Growing Company

• Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc. has been named one of the world’s fastest-growing public companies in The International Business Times’ 2011 IBT 1000 listing. Additionally, Nu Skin was one of the 10 fastest growing companies ranked in the household and personal products category and the largest company represented in this group.

“This is a wonderful honor and a direct reflection of our outstanding global sales force that is helping Nu Skin reach new heights of success as they focus on selling our proprietary ageLOC anti-aging products and sharing Nu Skin’s powerful business opportunity,” said Truman Hunt, president and chief executive officer of Nu Skin. “Working together with our global management team, our talented sales leaders have helped Nu Skin reach record revenue levels in each of the past two years—with a third straight year of record revenue projected for 2011.”

The 2011 IBT 1000 Fastest Growing Companies list ranks companies using its three-year revenue Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR), with each year’s revenue calculated on the basis of the Last Twelve Months (LTM). The three-year CAGR of Nu Skin Enterprises is 10.1%.

Clorox Acquires Aplicare, HealthLink

• The Clorox Company has acquired Aplicare, Inc. and HealthLink, providers of infection control products for the health care industry. These acquisitions are important steps in the company’s effort to increase exposure to faster-growing categories as part of an ongoing portfolio transformation, according to the company, and they also complement and expand the breadth and depth of the health care portfolio of Clorox’s Away From Home business unit.

Clorox has made two acquisitions to bulk up its health care portfolio.

The combined purchase price for both transactions was in the range of $80 million to $90 million, subject to post-closing adjustments, and was funded through cash and commercial paper borrowing, according to Clorox.

“One element of our strategy is making targeted, strategic acquisitions to drive faster growth,” said Clorox chairman and CEO Don Knauss. “Aplicare and HealthLink build on the success of our 2010 Caltech acquisition, which has strengthened our leadership in bleach-based hard-surface disinfection in hospitals. These transactions reinforce the company’s commitment to meet the unique needs of the health care industry, where the use of infection control products is growing rapidly in response to increased attention on helping prevent health care-associated infections.”

Aplicare, Meriden, CT, develops and manufactures different products to help prevent skin infection from needles or surgery. It sells its products to hospitals and companies that create kits for health care facilities.

“We can greatly benefit from Aplicare’s expertise in developing FDA-regulated products and from entry into a new channel of distribution to the manufacturers of surgical kits, where we do not sell our products today,” said Craig Stevenson, VP/GM, Clorox Away From Home business unit.

HealthLink, based in Jacksonville, FL, bundles a wide assortment of products, including AloeGuard antimicrobial soap, for use by individual physicians, doctors’ offices and other health care facilities.

According to a report by the Freedonia Group, infection control in the US is a $2.5 billion market and is expected to grow to $3 billion in the next five years. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimates that one in 20 hospital patients has a health care-associated infection at any given time.

“These acquisitions are great examples of using our strong cash flow to expand our portfolio of leading brands where there are significant tailwinds to drive growth,” Knauss said.

SkinMedica Acquires Colorescience

• SkinMedica, Inc. has acquired Colorescience, a mineral makeup company. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

The Colorscience line, founded by Diane Ranger, has been acquired by SkinMedica.

The Colorescience range—founded by Diane Ranger, who also founded Bare Escentuals—is used in physician-based aesthetics practices.

“Mineral makeup has been a priority expansion target for us for some time. It is especially gratifying to combine with Colorescience, as their product line is based in science and trusted by our physician customers,” said Mary Fisher, CEO of SkinMedica, which is based in Carlsbad, CA.

Josie Juncal will lead the new Colorescience subsidiary as VP-new commercial operations. Juncal, who has more than 10 years of experience in sales, sales management, marketing and education, has held lead roles at SkinMedica in product development, marketing, public relations and education.

“Josie has very strong relationships with the clinical leaders in medical aesthetics and a proven track record for driving growth,” said Fisher. “I am confident the outstanding team at Colorescience will deliver further impressive results under her leadership.”

“We are excited to add these highly complementary product offerings to expand our presence in the physician channel,” said Ted Schwarz, SkinMedica’s president. “With Colorescience, we can now offer our physician customers three categories of patient care—skin care, non-surgical procedures, and now mineral makeup—which will further deepen our relationships with our customers and their patients by enhancing outcomes with immediate results.”

“Each Colorescience product has been carefully formulated to work together in achieving the best results. It is with that same thoughtful consideration of synergy and results, that we have chosen to merge with SkinMedica,” said Ranger. “Our shared values and commitment to creating advanced products for the physician channel make this an exciting partnership.”

SkinMedica’s aesthetic skin care products include TNS Essential Serum and TNS Recovery Complex. The firm also manufactures Vaniqa Cream, the only FDA-approved prescription product for the reduction of unwanted facial hair in women.

Stoko Skin Honors 2011 Distributors

• Greensboro, NC-based Stoko Skin Care by Evonik, which operates in the away-from-home skin care/hygiene market, has named six top companies across North America as its distributors of the year for 2011. 
 They are: US National—Airgas Safety, Inc., Bristol, PA; North Central US—P&C Industrial Supplies, Dexter, MI; Northeast US—Custodial Partners, Newburyport, MA; Southeast US—Mercury Supply Co., Inc., Nashville TN; Southwest US—JC Paper, Fremont, CA; and Canada—Produits Chimiques Sany, Inc., Joliette, Quebec.

According to Roland Lindner, national sales manager, these “are the distributors whose management proactively supports the training of their own sales personnel. They also support the partnering with our sales team and the allocating of sufficient training time on our products to build proficiency in selling the Stoko line. Finally, these companies actively participate in our marketing initiatives, and run promotional initiatives of their own. They all exemplify true business professionalism.”

More info: www.stokoskincare.com

State Industrial Acquires LabTek

• State Industrial Products has acquired LabTek, a provider of institutional cleaning supplies in Bloomington, IN. LabTek will be integrated into State Cleaning Solutions, the company’s ware wash and laundry division, which provides institutional cleaning products and solutions.

“LabTek is an outstanding fit,” said Hal Uhrman, CEO of State Industrial Products. “We share customer-centered values, including the commitment to provide prompt, friendly and effective service. This partnership will provide the best programs for LabTek customers.”

With annual sales of almost $18 million, LabTek provides a single-source solution for cleaning supplies and equipment, utilizing chemicals that are specially formulated to combat the limestone and calcium deposits in Indiana’s hard water.

In the past four years, State Industrial has purchased more than a dozen regional cleaning suppliers across the US and incorporated them into State Cleaning Solutions, which now operates in 17 states.

“This new arrangement is important for LabTek customers and the markets we serve,” said LabTek’s former owner Jim Watson. “With the resources of State Cleaning Solutions, we can offer an expanded line of products and equipment to current customers while expanding our customer base.”

Watson will continue with State Cleaning Solutions of Bloomington as director of special projects.
Sean Sullivan, State Cleaning Solutions VP of sales, will head local operations. Tom Porter, former assistant VP of corporate accounts at Ecolab, will remain as business development manager.

CIBS Presents Annual Scholarship

• At the Cosmetic Industry Buyers and Suppliers (CIBS) December 2011 networking luncheon meeting, the scholarship committee presented its annual scholarship to an outstanding Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) student in the package design program.

(L-R): Nick LoPrinzi, Ted Boccuzzi, Alicia Tagliasacchi, Mario Magali, Marianne Klimchuk and Sandra Krasovec at the CIBS meeting in December.

The 2011 scholarship award winner is Alicia Tagliasacchi, a junior at FIT majoring in package design. She is currently interning at Coty and aspires to enter the industry in the New York City area after graduation. Tagliasacchi, was also awarded a complimentary membership to CIBS for one year and was invited to attend two luncheon meetings courtesy of CIBS in 2012.

More info: www.cibsonline.com





Make a ‘Splash’ at HBA Global

• New to HBA Global, which is June 19-21 in New York City, will be the premiere edition of the Splash pavilion, an exclusive and high-energy section on the exhibit floor that will showcase product offerings from select emerging companies, giving them valuable exposure to the beauty and personal care community.

Companies selected for the Splash pavilion will be judged by industry experts and recognized during HBA Global. In addition, HBA will conduct on-site tours for beauty bloggers to view the companies exhibiting, and the top two companies voted on by visiting attendees will receive a dedicated advertorial write-up in one of three beauty blogs.

HBA will promote the Splash pavilion pre-show online, in print and through various industry publications.

According to HBA, 57% of its audience is specifically looking for finished products.

More info: www.hbaexpo.com/splash

Eckart Sells Natural Mica Pearlescents To Sudarshan

• The Eckart Effect Pigments division of Altana has sold its natural mica pearlescent business for cosmetics to Sudarshan Chemical Industries Limited, India. The business comprises all products brand names of Prestige and Flonac-C that have been produced at Eckart’s plant in Pori, Finland.

Eckart’s cosmetics business will focus on its core businesses with metallic effect pigments and pearlescent pigments based on borosilicates and synthetic mica, according to the company.


Surdarshan will add the new lines to its existing Sumicos pearlescent pigment portfolio.